India

India: Child Nutrition Improved Through Rice Fortification

WFP helps the government enhance school meals in the Indian State of Odisha with iron-fortified rice. The initiative has won the approval of Roopteshwar, a schoolboy in the Gajapati district of eastern India.

Overview

India is the second most populous country in the world with an estimated 1.2 billion people and the third largest economy by GDP. Thanks to steady economic growth over the past decade, India was classified as a (lower) middle-income country by the World Bank in 2012. However, despite economic growth and self-sufficiency in food grains production, high levels of poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition persist in India. An estimated 32.7 percent of the Indian population lives on less than US$ 1.25 per day. The country is home to a quarter of all undernourished people worldwide. Any global impact on hunger requires progress in food and nutrition security in India.

WFP Partners With Government Of India’s Department Of Biotechnology For Promoting Fortification In The Fight Against Malnutrition

WFP signed a MoU with Government of India’s Department of Biotechnology (DBT) on the 13th of March, 2015 for promoting fortification in government food based social safety net schemes. WFP and DBT are partnering to integrate food fortification along with supplementation and dietary diversification in the response to address malnutrition in India. They will work together with stakeholders advocating the need for and benefits of fortification in relevant government schemes.